


Euphoria

by shadowhostage (thenakednymph)



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV), Stargate Universe
Genre: F/M, Gen, drug induced flirting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-22
Updated: 2013-10-22
Packaged: 2017-12-30 04:42:24
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,781
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1014228
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thenakednymph/pseuds/shadowhostage





	Euphoria

“What happened?” TJ hurried over to Lieutenant Scott and Master Sergeant Greer who held an unconscious Dr. Rush between them.

“He was stung by some kind of bee.” Scott shifted the doctor’s weight as TJ tilted his neck to the side, examining the wound.

“Well, it doesn’t look like the stinger’s in there and it’s not oozing puss or turning green or anything. Was he the only one stung?” The Lieutenant nodded as TJ took Rush’s pulse and checked for a fever. “Are you sure something’s wrong? Aside from the wound he seems perfectly normal.”

Scott and Greer shared a look. “Oh yeah, we’re sure,” Greer said. “He started laughing.”

“Wait, like a Rush laugh or a human laugh,” Eli interrupted, looking over the kino footage they’d brought back.

“Like a human laugh. He was giggling.”

Eli snorted, thinking it was a joke, but stopped at Greer’s expression. “Oh, that wasn’t a joke. You’re serious.” Eli turned to TJ. “Yeah, he needs to be in the infirmary.”

~

“I’m telling you, there’s nothing wrong with him. He’s perfectly normal.”

“Does that look normal to you?” Eli asked, pointing at Rush who sat on one of the beds giggling like a schoolgirl.

TJ sighed and took away the latex glove Rush was trying to inflate. “For him, no, but his stats are fine. In fact this is the healthiest I’ve seen him.

“Look, I can give him a sedative and by the time he wakes up the euphoria should be gone, but I’d rather not waste it if it isn’t necessary. Whatever the insect venom’s done to him it’ll probably wear off in a few hours.”

“A few hours?" Eli cried. "I can’t deal with this for a few hours. There’s ship diagnostics to be run and we still need to check out those new stasis pods and fix the hull breach in the main corridor from the last alien attack. I need Rush, not Susie McGiggles over here.” 

Rush sniggered and poked Eli in the side.

“Someone has to watch him Eli.” Colonel Young crossed his arms and stared at Dr. Rush as he hummed a tune idly to himself, looking around the room with an idiotic grin on his face.

“Oh no, not me. I am not babysitting Bill Nye.”

“I’ll do it.”

The three turned and looked at Belle, the newest addition to their crew via the stasis pods. She’d adapted quickly to her new surroundings but remembered little of her life before the freezing. She’d been drawn to hydroponics and TJ’s stash of herbal remedies, displaying quite the green thumb.

“It’s not like I have anything better to do,” she said, setting the aloe-like plant they’d found a few gates back, on a nearby table.

“Are you sure you can handle him?” Colonel Young asked.

“I’m tougher than I look Colonel. If all else fails I’ll sedate him—without drugs.”

“Are you all right with that?” he asked TJ.

“Works for me.”

“Good, let me know if there’s any change.”

They watched him march from the room and TJ began removing all the medical supplies from Rush’s general area.

“Hey Eli? Would you bring me a kino?” Belle asked as Rush pulled two leaves from the plant and held them over his head, angling them to make them look like horns, making a face and growling like a beastie.

Eli watched Dr. Rush warily. “Why?”

Belle laughed. “If he’s going to be like this for a few hours I want it documented.”

“That…is a very good idea. He’ll deny everything when he snaps out of it, but if we have footage…” He grinned and almost ran from the room.

As he left Belle turned back to Dr. Rush. “All right Wild Thing, you better give me those back before you get goop in your hair.” She managed to snatch one from him before he decided to play keep-away with the other. She braced her hand against the bed, reaching across him to try and grab the leaf when he put his arm around her waist and pulled.

Belle lost her balance and fell against him, flushing as he nuzzled his nose against her cheek and giggled in her ear.

“Let go of me you little monster.”

He shook his head like a petulant child, all coy smiles and proud giggles, wrapping his other arm around her waist.

“TJ, a little help here,” Belle called, craning her head back to try and catch a glimpse of the medic who stood laughing at her.

“No way. He’s all yours.”

Belle struggled to break free as Rush rubbed his whiskered cheek against her neck and she squealed, wriggling in his arms.

“Am I interrupting something?” Eli asked, the fresh kino floating beside him.

“Eli, help!”

“You know I would…but it’s not my turn to babysit him yet.” He dropped the kino off next to her as Rush whiskered her again. “Besides, better you than me.”

Belle shrieked with laughter, glaring at Eli and TJ when the giggles finally subsided. “Loads of help you two are.”

“Hey, you’re the one who said you could handle him,” Eli teased. “But I didn’t know he was such a flirt.” He backed from the room with a wide smile. “Have fun.”

“Eli,” Belle pleaded, “don’t leave me here.” She groaned as the doors to the infirmary slid closed and Rush cuddled her closer, pleased they were alone. Belle huffed, finally giving up on her struggling.

“All right, fine. Two can play at this game.” She attacked Rush’s sides with her fingers until he caved with laughter, finally releasing her.

Belle quickly stepped out of his reach, straightening her hair as best she could and adjusting her wrinkled blouse, rolling the sleeves back up over her elbows. “You sir, and nothing but a troublemaker. How ever did your poor mother manage?”

Rush laughed and swung his feet. “She died trying,” he said in a sing song. Belle was so surprised by the answer she wasn’t sure she heard right.

“What?”

Rush giggled again, his cheeks flushed. “Drove her to her grave, yes I did. That’s what Daddy said.”

Belle sank slowly onto the bed across from him. “That isn’t true.” She had no right to say that, no idea how his mother had died, but for a father to say such a thing to his son was unimaginable.

“Sure it is. Daddy said so.”

“Nicholas.” Belle leaned towards him. “That isn’t true. No matter what happened you can’t blame yourself. I lost my mother too, when I was very young. I blamed myself for her death for years. She was weak after birthing me and when I was six a plague struck, taking her life but it wasn’t my fault," she said slowly, "It wasn’t anyone’s fault. She just got sick.” 

Belle leaned back, unclasping the necklace with the pearl she always wore. “This was hers.” She held it out to him. “Gentle,” she guided as he reached for it.

He took it lightly, dangling it overhead, watching the pearl spin, the light catching on its milky surface. Then he frowned and looked past the necklace at her.

“Hey, you’re not s’pose to remember,” he whined.

Belle glanced down at her hands. “I know, but no one would have believed me anyway. They’d have thought I was crazy, like the others,” she whispered.

Rush tilted his head to the side, the necklace still held aloft, his pupils wide and dark.

“My father was the king of a land known as Avonlea and we were in the middle of a war. A man came, a sorcerer, offering peace in exchange for me.” Belle glanced down at the floor. “I accepted. I was to work as his caretaker, nothing more, but I grew to love him.

“Once, he sent me to town for straw. I met a queen along the way who told me I could break his curse with a kiss of true love.” She laid back on the bed, tracing the ceiling with her eyes, not enjoying this trip down memory lane, but Rush wasn’t likely to remember it anyway.

“And you lived happily ever after, the end,” Rush giggled, clapping his hands.

Belle shook her head sadly. “Not quite. The kiss was working, breaking his curse, but the loss of his power frightened him more than his love for me.

“He threw me from the castle." Her expression grew bittersweet and she trailed her fingers idly over the sheets."

“Years later the same queen who’d fooled me into thinking love would be enough to heal him cursed all of us, unraveling true love. Families and lovers were ripped apart, something always keeping them away from each other. None of us ever got our happy endings.

“Then I woke up here, in a world I understand even less.” She rubbed at her eyes with a grimace. “Maybe this is all just another level to the curse; or maybe I really have gone insane,” she muttered, the words distorted through her hands.

“Sounds like a Disney movie,” Rush snickered.

“It’s more like a fairytale," TJ interjected. Belle hadn't heard her come back in. 

"What do you mean?" 

"The fairytales the movies are inspired by are much darker. In Disney’s version of The Little Mermaid she never gets her tongue cut out and Sleeping Beauty wasn’t raped. Disney didn’t always get the story right; and not all stories have happy endings.” She gave Belle a sad look, picking up whatever it was she forgot and leaving the room again, silence hanging heavy over their heads. 

Once again sitting up Belle twisted her hands together, chewing on her lip. She glanced up at Rush from the bed, her heart heavy. “You look like him you know, the man I loved.”

“Well come here and give us a kiss,” he teased, drawing a smile from her. “Maybe you can break my curse.”

Belle shook her head, letting his happiness infuse her and chase away her sorrow. “No way.”

“Aw, come on, give us a kiss.” He reached for her with his hands like a child saying ‘gimmie, gimmie’ and Belle smothered a laugh.

“No.”

Rush leaned towards her, swaying on the bed, and before she could move, he’d caught her face in his hands and kissed her smack-dab on the mouth, sound effects and all.

Belle gaped up at him as he grinned. “Nope, still stoned,” he giggled. She could only stare as he flopped back down on his bed.

Flushing from the base of her throat to the tips of her ears, she glanced up at the kino. “Remind me to delete that footage before Eli sees it.”


End file.
